December 27, 2016 | 22:59 (GMT+7)
Vietnam to extend rice trade deal with Philippines
The Government has issued a resolution, approving the extension of its rice trade agreement with the Philippine Government.
Under the resolution, Vietnam will continue to supply rice for the Philippines through the exchange of notes and approval of exchange notes.
The Government tasks the Foreign Ministry, in coordination with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, with finalizing and sending exchange notes to the Philippines to extend the agreement and carry out relevant procedures.
The 2010 rice trading agreement is due to lapse on December 31, 2016 and expected to be extended for the 2017-2020 period.
The Philippines is among the biggest importers of rice from Vietnam. However, the rice shipments to the Philippines have experienced a downturn recently.
The Vietnam Food Association said domestic businesses have a chance to boost rice exports as the Philippines plans to import 293,100 tons of rice from Vietnam to meet food demand during the 2017 between-crop period.
Last August, Vietnam also won a bidding to provide 150,000 tons of rice for the Philippines.
Vietnam-Philippines bilateral trade topped USD 2.92 billion in 2015. It increased by 15.3 percent year on year to USD 1.52 billion in the first half of 2016, including USD 1.08 billion of Vietnam’s exports, up 17.5 percent.
Source: VNA